Community Engagement for Security Building against Radicalisation and Recruitment

Terror attacks and violent extremist ideologies are now a reality in and across Europe. The recruitment of young men and women is a major concern for security experts and politicians. Counter-offensives in the IS territories continue to focus on military measures, which are accompanied by high losses; both in terms of civilian casualties as well as a progressive drain of public confidence. Yet extremist ideologies do not just develop in adolescents by themselves, rather they are confronted by a myriad of ‘push and pull’ factors creating the conditions for radicalization. The young people therefore need support in their daily lives and this extremely vulnerable group of adolescent young boys, and increasingly girls, must find proper support in the family.

In response, Women without Borders developed the model Mothers Schools Against Extremism, tested in five countries affected by terrorism from Pakistan to Indonesia, Nigeria to India with 800 mothers sensitized to the dangers of extremism to date.

On March 2nd dynamic speaker, and Mothers School leader in India, Archana Kapoor, Mothers School leader in Pakistan, Tasneem Ahmar, and Mothers School leader in Srinigar and key witness to extremist violence, Munawar Sultana presented their stories and key findings at a press conference in Vienna, highlighting the need to include mothers in the fight against extremism. Federal Ministers Rudolf Hundstorfer and Gabriele Heinisch-Hosek, were present and are in support of bringing the Mothers School model to Austria.

The following links show an overview of the press coverage (only german):